This week DC has been revealing new looks for its core characters, including some startling fashion changes. The new looks have been revealed in variousplaces We’ve cobbled it all up for you below but here’s the shorter version:

• Batman is now a robot or something. Scott Snyder calls it “the boldest, weirdest, biggest thing we’ve ever tried on the book.” Maybe the suit is an exo skeleton or something…his ears are now antenna-thingies that have distant echoes of a cross between Doom Patrol Cliff, Batman Beyond and Ultron. Totally on trend.

• Superman now looks like..Channing Tatum. After he trashed his tights the other day he’s put on some comfy jeans that give him mobility and a sporty vibe. This look debuted in the Grant Morrison/Rags Morales Action Comics, but Superman has a shorter, more contemporary haircut. And no capes because Edna Mode.

• Wonder Woman has gotten a VERY thorough update that also seems to include body armor as well as big wrist spikes (ala Wolverine) and a logo treatment that…well, it resembles Captain Marvel just a weeeeeeee bit. I don’t really like loincloths, but whatever floats your boat.

• Also Harley Quinn has kneeepads…dont’ know how long that has been going on but NOT GOING THERE.

While I don’t expect to see any of these looks on toasters or immersion blenders any time soon, a shake up is good, and I’m sure all the stories behind these changes will be exciting (The Batman robot one looks promising). In the meantime here’ amore of DC’s new June look:

Here’s the lineup:

BATMAN #41
Written by SCOTT SNYDER Art by GREG CAPULLO and DANNY MIKI
Cover by GREG CAPULLO
THE JOKER Variant cover by SEAN MURPHY
On sale JUNE 10 • 32 pg, FC, $3.99 US • RATED T
Retailers: This issue will ship with two covers. Please see the order form for more information.
The all-new Batman makes his debut! Who is he, and what happens next? Find out here as a new era begins in Gotham City!

ACTION COMICS #41
Written by GREG PAK and AARON KUDER / Art and cover by AARON KUDER THE
JOKER Variant cover by DARWYN COOKE On sale JUNE 3 • 32 pg, FC, $3.99 US • RATED T
The epic new storyline “TRUTH” begins! For Superman, there’s no more holding back!

HARLEY QUINN #17 Written by AMANDA CONNER and JIMMY PALMIOTTI / Art by CHAD HARDIN
Cover by AMANDA CONNER / THE JOKER Variant cover by EDUARDO RISSO
On sale JUNE 10 • 32 pg, FC, $3.99 US • RATED T
They’re here – the Gang of Harleys has arrived! Because the world demanded more Harley Quinn, Harley has answered the call – will a dozen more Harleys do the trick? Meet Carli Quinn, Harley Queen, HanukQuinn, and many, many, MANY more in a story that will have your sides splitting!

There’s a traitor in the Sinestro Corps who has set New Korugar on a path to certain destruction! The smart move would be to evacuate the Korugarian refugees from the planet, but Sinestro knows finding the identity of the traitor is more crucial, which leads to an unexpected betrayal from someone you would never expect, and a punishment from Sinestro that will alter someone’s life irrevocably!

GRAYSON #9 Written by TOM KING and TIM SEELEY / Art and cover by MIKEL JANIN
THE JOKER Variant cover by DAVE JOHNSON
On sale JUNE 24 • 32 pg, FC, $3.99 US • RATED T
Everything changes as Helena takes over SPYRAL! Plus: Grayson gets a new partner!

WONDER WOMAN #41 Written by MEREDITH FINCH
Art and cover by DAVID FINCH and JONATHAN GLAPION
THE JOKER Variant cover by BRIAN BOLLAND

On sale JUNE 17 • 32 pg, FC, $3.99 US RATED T

Retailers: This issue will ship with two covers. Please see the order form for details. A daring new direction begins with the arrival of a brand-new villain! But while he may be new to us, he’s not new to the world he seeks to tame. And speaking of villains, Donna Troy’s quest to destroy Wonder Woman ratchets up another gear (if that’s even possible!), while the games of the Gods bring dark portents to the ultimate Amazon!

GREEN LANTERN #41
Written by ROBERT VENDITTI
Art by BILLY TAN and MARK IRWIN
Cover by BILLY TAN
THE JOKER Variant cover by BEN OLIVER
On sale JUNE 3 • 32 pg, FC, $3.99 US • RATED T
“Renegade!” Beginning a new chapter in Hal Jordan’s life as he becomes the universe’s most wanted outlaw! And wait till you meet Hal’s new partner, Darlene. She’s definitely not what you’re expecting!

DETECTIVE COMICS #41
Written by FRANCIS MANAPUL and
BRIAN BUCCELLATO
Art and cover by FRANCIS MANAPUL
THE JOKER Variant cover by PATRICK GLEASON
On sale JUNE 10 • 32 pg, FC, $3.99 US • RATED T
Following the events of “Endgame,” get ready to ride with the GCPD in a whole new city! Harvey Bullock is leading a Bat task force, but what are his duties, and can he be trusted? And what kind of welcome awaits his new partner, Renee Montoya?

SUPERMAN/WONDER WOMAN #18
Written by PETER J. TOMASI
Art by DOUG MAHNKE and others
Cover by PAULO SIQUEIRA
THE JOKER Variant cover by CLIFF CHIANG
On sale JUNE 17 • 32 pg, FC, $3.99 US • RATED T
The epic new storyline “TRUTH” continues! As the pressure mounts, a relationship is tested!

Also here’s a look at the Batman/Superman #21 cover where you can see the robotic bats in all its glory.

Heidi MacDonald is the founder and editor in chief of The Beat. In the past, she worked for Disney, DC Comics, Fox and Publishers Weekly. She can be heard regularly on the More To Come Podcast. She likes coffee, cats and noble struggle.

Comments

I have no feeling for these characters at all anymore – I am officially out of the loop.

Superman with bloodied, dripping fists – replace the S with a skull and you’ve got Frank Castle.
Batman – Briareos from Appleseed wants his suit back.
Wonder Woman – A fussy costume, it will not become iconic. All those metal bits must dig and chafe when moving. I hope she never has an itch on her nose – she’ll have her eyes out with those things if she scratches.

In this group is 5 of the 7 DC titles I collect. Grayson looks to be the best one of the bunch since I have been a Grayson/Robin/Nightwing fan since I started reading comics. Superman looks stupid like a neanderthal thug/street punk. Batman looks like he is now wearing Space Marine armor from Warhammer 40K. Green Lantern looks like he did when he became Parallax years ago, not really interested in that repeat. Finally to Wonder Woman, while I like the new look, I don’t care for the spikes.

Put Superman and Batman back the way they have been for 70+ years. Take this crap and trash it NOW!

The only one I like is Wonder Woman’s costume. Except for the spikes, they make no sense. Superman seems to be trying too hard to look like Connor’s old look and Batman looks horrible. Harley Quinn’s costume isn’t too bad and I’d have to see a full picture of Hal Jordan to make a decision on it.

In my honest consumerish opinion, if I were in charge of these properties…I’d fire whomever was working on them at this point. And blacklist whomever suggested the changes.

RoboCop-Batman? What…is Gotham in Detroit now or something?

Modern near-metrosexual Superman? Does our new superman also enjoy jogging in the park, and doing other non-iconic and casual things? Will he casually save the day now? Pfft, capes…who needs capes, fuck capes…amirite DC?

Wonderman…sorry, Wonder Woman is meh. I have no real opinon on her since I never grew up with her comics really. Same for the rest I suppose. I might look into borrowing a copy of the new RoboCop…sorry, RoboBat– agh, I’m so sorry, The ALL NEW ROBO-BATMAN.. (did I get it right this time?) just to see what the new look is all about. For an issue really. I’d never spend any real money on a series that looks as bad as this, lol.

I think DC has been taken over by Marvel undercover agents and spies… They are trashing the whole DC universe!!!! Look at what they have done to comic book’s trinity!!! They are being defaced and no ones stopping them!!!! SAVE THEM

This is the ABSOLUTE worse-case that I have ever seen of batman in nearly 40 years of collecting. I went to my first comic con here in Cleveland in February and had a ball. I met and talked with Neil Adams… The best! I am seriously thinking of giving up on comics, especially Batman, my favorite, if they keep this mess, this monstrosity! This is actually worse than AzBats!! Fire the whole lot of artist/writers who thought of this and the editors who went with it!!! I’m in my forties and I SPENT over $1500.00 in Batman merchandise…WE ARE THE ONES WHO PAY YOUR SALARIES…THINK ABOUT THAT!! This is not what we want. nuff said!!

I like the Wonder Woman costume, if you don’t know what the spikes are for think about it for a minute. Superman is ok, but every time I look at it I wonder if he showered today? Batman is just a no, he has a gun? Since when does Batman use a gun? Batman should be hardboiled noir combined with a good kung fu movie not dark and gritty Ironman.

I beleave that in Sterankos history of comics,published back in 1970-1972,One of DC’s most powerful men Mort Weiseinger said about supes, that the character was invincible,in the aspect that no matter how crappy a story was that seen print, it NEVER caused any great harm to the books sales.In any case,back in the day they knew to make any story that crossed the line to greatly, an imaginary one,out of continuity.They wanted the characters to be easy to learn about and follow.I quit buying any dc product but silver and golden age reprints, about ten years ago.They are NOT going to get back their base readership,nor gain a new one.

Why hasn’t Dan DiDio been fired yet. I have bought 0 comic books since the new 52, bought 0 DC movies and when Young Justice (TV) was cancelled my last bit of love for DC basically disappeared. If Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman are the Trinity, Dick Grayson is #4 and is my favorite character and yet he’s been treated like trash and IIRC several writer even threatened to walk out when DiDio wanted him killed off during Infinite Crisis. Has DC done anything good since the moron took over? Has any of what I consider the big 4 not been screwed over since his tenure began? The lone great long running story line of his era was Grayson as Batman (I actually preferred it to Bruce, and the other good story lines were generally only mini arcs before the writer got screwed over).

Forgot to ad, the only other heroes as screwed over by DiDio are Donna Troy and Wally West. In roughly 80 years of DC history only 2 characters have actually, truly grown up and evolved permanently, Grayson and West. Plus I actually liked the fact that Donna Troy had a multiple choice origin (though not intentional like the Phantom Stranger) because it spoke the absurdity of everything, kind of like Rip Hunter and Hypertime. Speaking of Phantom Stranger, taking away his multiple choice origin destroyed a lot of his mystic.

Forgot to ad, the only other heroes as screwed over by DiDio are Donna Troy and Wally West. In roughly 80 years of DC history only 2 characters have actually, truly grown up and evolved permanently, Grayson and West. Plus I actually liked the fact that Donna Troy had a multiple choice origin (though not intentional like the Phantom Stranger) because it spoke the absurdity of everything, kind of like Rip Hunter and Hypertime. Speaking of Phantom Stranger, taking away his multiple choice origin destroyed a lot of his mystique.

Whoa! The artist on Supes/ Wonder Woman has such a limited ability to draw faces they look like they’re brother and sister! At least WW got equal time with those awful nehru collars the costume designer at DC obsesses over. Sheesh! Also, it doesnt look like Bats is going to be able to fit into the Batmobile anymore, and nothing says class for poor Hal Jordan like that hoodie! Silly, silly designs. Ugly, unimaginative, and awful.

Idiotic, every one of them. (Although Wonder Woman’s costume doesn’t completely bother me, other than no skin showing. Pathetic. But those spikes from her wrists do need to go.)

I thought the red on Superman’s fists (assuming he wasn’t just some street fighter wearing his favorite super hero’s T-shirt) might be a ripped up cape as well, but it looks like it’s on his shoes too. Also looks like it’s on the ground so yeah, I think it’s blood. (So does Superman get jeans from Krypton now? Cause aren’t regular store bought jeans going to get shredded while fighting super villians, or even melt off next time he flies into the sun or something?)

If you thought Bruce Wayne took Rachel Dawes’ death hard and stayed cooped up for 8 years, wait till he finds out what these morons stuck in his Bat closet. Is Bruce Wayne a paraplegic now, and can only use a remote controlled Batman or something? Let’s hope he doesn’t have to go under any short bridges or overpasses. Those martian antennae will never clear them.

Geez, and I thought turning Johnny Storm black was the most idiotic thing one could do.

Is DC trying to go bankrupt, I mean I know their writing has been kind of bankrupt for years but between this dung heap and the excrement they keep churning out for movie theaters the future is not bright for DC. About the only thing they have that is good right now is the TV stuff. Really like Constantine, Flash and Arrow. The rest is drek.

Wow. I was just telling myself to go back to some DC, and they are not making it any easier. These changes wont get me to pay 2 bucks let alone the near-5 dollar tag they are asking nowadays. Supes looks like a bigger meathead than usual (tony nails this perfectly in his post), wonder woman looks like she’s ready to perform an Amazon-sized pap smear, batman …. where do I begin? Grayson n lantern may not be complete shite, but I could be wrong. Ok, I’ll go back to my Dark Horse and Image Comics now. (Marvel is next on the chopping block, their Star Wars is decent, but still wish Dark Horse had the rights.)

Of course, if super-hero costumes were at all realistic, most of the natural peeps would be sporting kneepads with their spandex. They’d need them for all those nifty slides and the knees are the first thing to go on athletes. Harley is one of the few comic characters sane enough to care about her future!

WW’s costume change is not too bad, too much going on though, and it looks like she’s about to yell “Shazam”. GL’s design change does remind me of the Parallex series, guess they’re going for an edgier look which could work. The Superman modification is an abomination. They designed him to look like a GD gymrat Benny. (If your from the Jersey Shore you know what a Benny is). Plus the Superman/Wonder Woman cover looks like they are going to have a “domestic violence” issue. The “Gundam” Batman modification looks like a joke, but worst of all (didn’t see anyone note this in thier comments), Batman has a GUN!! Both Batman covers show “Robo-Batman” with a handgun. That is the worst possible change to make. 70+ years of Batman and the 1 unchanging fact is Batman does NOT use GUNS. (except for Frank Miller’s Dark Knight Series) but that’s different from the main series line.

and superman looks to have some red material on his hands and blood on the ground…although i dont know the idiotic reason behind that!! unless its supposed to be symbolic of him ditching his cape or something…either way pretty dumb.

I think the changes are fun…and, like all comic character changes… they will most likely be temporary. I do think Superman looks a little less “super” in an outfit that he apparently bought at Sears. But it never really made sense to me that comic characters always wore the same thing every day anyway. As long as the stories are good, I’m on board and Wonder Woman is currently better than she’s been in 3 years.

It’s all so stupid. The world of DC was just fine until they started fussing with it. It was all supposed to make it easier for newer readers, but it just snowballed. Now it’s even harder to figure out than it was before. And the costumes, don’t get me started on the costumes. If you go to the gravesites of Mort Weisinger and Julie Schwartz you will surely hear a loud whirring as they both are spinning at incredible rpms. I had to give up comics recently, and I guess it was for the best. I couldn’t stand this new stuff from DC. Or Marvel for that matter.

So DC made Batman an Ironman/Blue Beetle hybrid, Wonder Woman they made Captain Marvels (Carol Danvers) DC doppelganger, Green Lantern is now Dark AJ Styles??? And they made Superman (my all time favorite super hero ever) a Frank Castle look-alike!!! WTF!!!! You know…I didn’t grow up running around my grandparents farm wearing a regular t-shirt and jeans pretending to be Superman. I grew up running around wearing a blue superman t-shirt and jeans AND a red bath towel tied around my neck pretending to be Superman. hopefully those are just variant covers and nothing more.

I think DC is on some punch drunk love. Superman looks like your average I’m at the gym all the time guy. The Bat suit or robo suit I think Thomas Wayne is the new Batman as he is the only batman that has ever used a gun. Wonder Woman she is a warrior princess so i understand the armor just take away the spikes and give her sword back. Why not have several different Harleys. Harvey Bullock running a bat squad? If I may I will summarize The Joker. “WHERE DO THEY GET THESE WONDERFUL IDEAS.”

I said the same thing as others said about Bats. That’s more like a Mecha-Tick than Batman. The Supes is just a take off from Superboy like he’s grown up now. The Wonder-spikes aren’t really cool. And Harley is more of a roller derby or volleyball queen now? No real opinion on Renegade since we see practically nothing. We all know Sinestro has a good side so there’s nothing new shown in that image.

The thing that made Batman best was his vulnerability. No super powers, just strategy and preparation. With this suit, he’s Ironman. He’s invulnerable. There’s no suspense. There’s no humanity. Now he’s just a silly cartoon figure like all the other boring super-heroes. How can you lose when you hold all the cards? How do you admire someone who outmatches everyone?

I also thought Superman’s fists were blood soaked upon first viewing of that image, but a closer look does show that he’s got his ripped up cape wrapped around his fingers. Pretty cool they’re gonna use the classic Fleischer cartoon Superman logo for a while. They also might consider re-touching Bat-robot’s ears since they make him look like a rabbit instead of a bat.

That said, everyone complaining should just enjoy these obviously temporary storylines or drop the title until they’re over if you don’t like them. The status quo, more or less, will be back before you know it.

Wonder woman looks good she just needs less spikes and look less like captain marvel(carol danvers), superman looks well I can’t think of the correct words to sum up how stupid it looks, Dick looks sexy as ever, cannot wait for what happens next in Greyson with Helena in charge, Harley my all time favourite read her comic and all of suicide squad I can say not that big of a difference just longer socks and the rest is probably her roller derby uniform but with her own flair thrown in, I couldn’t care less for green lantern and as for batman, SERIOUSLY DC I JUST BEGAN BUYING HIS COMICS BESIDES ETERNAL AND YOU PULL THIS STUNT well i know what to stop buying after endgame is over(same for batman/robin and i hope it never appears in catwoman or i may have to skip that issue). Hopefully their stories will make up for…all the changes doubtful but we can hope foolishly can’t we.

I don’t get it. What is this? That picture of Superman with the awful haircut and the bloody fists. His arms are way too pumped. Superman has a nice physique, but he doesn’t have to be all roided out. He gets his strength from the Sun. It’s in his DNA, not his muscles.

Let’s start from the top shall we? Hey look Batman just became a Kamen Rider! Like someon took G3-X (Agito)and Gattack (Kabuto) and threw in a bat all in a blender. All the suit has to say now is Cast off and Clock up!

As for sups, what are you channeling Connor’s look now? Well at least it makes sense he is a Kansas farm boy.

Harley…kind of scares me in a roller derby kind of way. It works.

Sinestro looks about the same moving on.

Grayson, Dick Grayson, Shaken not stirred…Dick is now bond apparently..

I’m going to cross my fingers and adopt a wait-and-see attitude. DC does crap like this all the time–creates storylines with “big” changes & things go back to some kind of normal later. Or (please, please, please) some of these stories and looks might be part of the new Convergence arc as the 52 worlds collide (& some won’t make it). Could all end up being non-continuity stuff or end up wiped from history.

Relax people! This is just another temporary story arc, all will be the same again with the outdated, ridiculous spandex tights and swimwear. It seems like all the complainers are a bunch of old 40-50 year old dudes with ponytails and goatees who can’t seem to let go of their living-in-mom’s-basement past.

Big two comics are heading in the wrong direction, and they’ve been going that way for a while. I don’t know why a lot of you are surprised, and I’ve long stopped caring about the business. Back issues are getting better with age, and there’s so much older material to get to that I’ll never want for something new to read. These designs suck, but a lot of this comment section is pretty embarrassing.

these costume designs are meant for the youth market, not the older demographic that dc has decided they will no longer cater to, and I guess that dc has got it in their heads that street clothing is what appeals to the younger demographic. now if these designs were for the movies, a case might be made for “broader audience”, but these designs are not meant for movies, they are meant for comics, which makes them dull, boring, and totally missing the point of super hero comics. when super heroes are fighting in street clothing, they are no longer super heroes, they’re everyday people smacking around other people . in costume, they become outrageous, larger than life, and most of all fun (even the spirit has a mask). major kudos, props, and applause go to the legions of comic book artist that over the decades have made those crazy, insane, outfits look great on paper. that’s the point, what may not work in a movie looks great on a comic book page. of course there are many out there that feel those costumes are outdated with the ridiculous spandex tights, and swimwear, and I guess these people would not feel as embarrassed about reading “funny books” if the characters dressed like everyday people. dc (and we’ll see how far marvel goes) has decided to let go of their older fan base in search of a younger fan base. this is their prerogative, and while their decisions do not make me angry, I think it’s kinda sad that they would take an audience that’s been with them for decades and kick them to the curb for a younger , fresher audience. sorta like when a spouse kicks their mate to the curb for a younger, fresher mate. so the younger demographic should enjoy this time while they can, ’cause one day, years from now, they too will be pushed aside for a younger audience. I guess my advice to them would be to not get too attached to this hobby, so when their times comes they can move on quickly and move out of their mom’s basement.

This new Bat-Man is not going to stick. All this is now is a complete rip off of Iron Man and they’ve ruined a legendary character. What made Bat-Man cool was that he was an ordinary guy who relied on skill, intellect, and used gadgetry that worked with his martial arts skills who fought crazed psychos and mob figures. Who ever came up with robobats must have been sniffing crack! If they wanted such big change in DC then they should have left Grayson as Bat-Man and Damian as Robin and left Bruce Wayne in his grave or bring Terry McGuiness as a modern day new Bat-Man. This is what happens when DC tries to copy cat off Marvel Comics, you get junk!

mankind’s greatest problem has always been change. i read all the comments here and all i could do was laugh. comics are very fluid mediums and are subject to change at anytime. but change is never permanent. this is their convergence look, convergence wont last forever.. the same thing happened after flashpoint, everyone complained about crappy costumes and all but still got used to it eventually. convergence will come and go and everything will be back to normal. besides ive read action comics 41, theres nothing more brilliant than what was in it..

Oh my god. WW’s costume is terrible.
It doesn’t even look anything like the one(s) she wore before.
Also: No Skin ? Why?
Do the editors in DC have a problem with the woman form? Do they need her covered up?

Oh god this is terrible , I would have only criticized WW’s stupid butt costume , but bat robot is Dumb , so is SuperPunisher.
These are so disgusting , Wonderwoman looks ridiculous , that’s not WonderWoman ,that’s more of a Wonder Tranny.
Superman’s image makes me wanna kill a cat , and batrobo nonsense is ….. just unbearable(atleast could have made the mech sleek).
It’s dying without good scripts , the 52 was the beginning of the end, ask Flash to travel back and change something PLEASE. -_-)